Former Oyo State Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Adedapo Lam-Adesina, has urged governorship candidates in the state to unveil their manifestos and concrete plans for sports and youth development sectors ahead of the next administration.
Lam-Adesina, who is also a former member of the House of Representatives, made the call in a statement posted on his Facebook page on Thursday, while reacting to the reported protest by some athletes of the Oyo State Sports Council over unpaid bonuses and allowances.
He said the reported welfare challenges confronting athletes in the state deserved urgent attention, noting that Oyo State could lose talented sportsmen and women if issues surrounding their welfare were not properly addressed.
According to him, some medal-winning athletes had reportedly left the state in recent times because of welfare concerns.
Recalling his tenure as Commissioner for Sports and Youth Development between 2011 and 2013 under the administration of former Governor Abiola Ajimobi, Lam-Adesina said his administration prioritised the welfare of athletes and coaches.
He said the government increased the number of contract athletes and coaches from 133 to 242 after employing 109 additional personnel.
Lam-Adesina added that monthly allowances for athletes were increased from N12,000 to N30,000, while coaches’ allowances rose from N15,000 to N40,000.
He also highlighted increases in financial rewards for athletes who won medals for Oyo State at the National Sports Festival.
He said gold medal winners received N500,000 at the 2011 Port Harcourt festival, up from N300,000, while the reward was further increased to N750,000 for the 2012 Eko Festival.
Similarly, silver medal rewards were increased from N200,000 to N350,000 in 2011 and N500,000 in 2012, while bronze medal rewards rose from N100,000 to N150,000 and subsequently N350,000.
Lam-Adesina also recalled that Paralympic world record holder Yakubu Adesokan MON received N4 million and a pilgrimage slot in 2012, while his coach received N2 million.
He said coaches whose athletes won medals were also rewarded, with N500,000 for gold, N250,000 for silver and N150,000 for bronze.
Beyond financial incentives, the former commissioner said his administration invested in sports infrastructure, including the rehabilitation and equipping of the Oyo State Executive Gymnasium in Mokola, the renovation of the Lekan Salami Indoor Sports Hall and the rehabilitation of the Squash Hall at the Lekan Salami Sports Complex.
He further cited the organisation of Oyo State Special Sports competitions, the hosting of the zonal elimination for the 2012 Eko Festival and what he described as the first Softball and Baseball Clinic in Nigeria as some of the initiatives undertaken to promote sports development.
Lam-Adesina also called for the restructuring of the Oyo State Ministry of Youth and Sports, arguing that the ministry had become too large and that its sports functions should be separated into a dedicated commission.
“The arrangement is outdated as several states and even the Federal Government have scrapped the archaic system by creating Commissions to handle the sports and youth development aspect of this very important ministry,” he said.
He appealed to Governor Seyi Makinde to urgently look into the welfare concerns of athletes in the state, noting that the governor had previously supported athletes through financial rewards.
Lam-Adesina recalled that following the Edo 2020 National Sports Festival, gold medalists from Oyo State received N500,000, silver medalists N350,000 and bronze medalists N250,000.
He further stated that after the Delta 2022 festival, where Oyo State finished fourth, the state government rewarded gold medalists with N1 million, silver medalists with N500,000, bronze medalists with N350,000 and non-medalists with N250,000 each.
The former commissioner urged young people in Oyo State to take advantage of the electioneering period to engage all governorship candidates on their proposed policies for sports and youth development and empowerment.
He said candidates should be challenged to clearly explain how they intend to improve athletes’ welfare, develop sports infrastructure, nurture sporting talents and create opportunities for young people in the state.
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